On Wednesday 25 May 2022, Spotify took the opportunity to celebrate a crop of African creators who are making their voices heard and, through that, showing the world the vast array of African talent.
Dubbed Sounds of Africa, the campaign highlighted six artists and six podcasters and came to life through a social media campaign in the week leading up to 25 May. It all culminated in a night of merrymaking in Johannesburg, South Africa, where some of the creators as well as music industry stakeholders were present.
The six podcasters included Kenya’s Mantalk.ke and The Sandwich Podcast, Nigeria’s I Said What I Said and Tea with Tay and South Africa’s True Crime ZA and After School is After School with Sis G.U. The six artists were Kenya’s Chris Kaiga and Nikita Kering’, Nigeria’s Ladipoe and Preyé, and South Africa’s Nomfundo Moh and Zoë Modiga.
The host for the evening was the multi-talented Patricia Kihoro, who kicked off the event with a fireside chat with Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Spotify Africa’s Managing Director.
In her first-ever interview in the role, Muhutu-Remy shared about the Spotify journey in Africa and how platforms like Spotify can help out African storytelling on the map. A creator panel featuring Eli and Oscar of Mantalk.ke, Jola from the “I Said What I Said podcast” and South African artist Zoë Modiga reiterated the importance of telling our own stories as a way of changing the perceptions of the continent.
Spotify also announced the creation of the Africa Podcast Grant to help highlight voices from the continent. The $100,000 grant will be given to 10 creators that are telling Africa’s story. This fund aims to amplify underrepresented stories and perspectives in podcasting.
The party officially kicked off with Blinky Bill, who delivered an electrifying set that got everyone dancing, and a couple of Kenyans in the house even joined him on stage. South African dancer-turned-artist Kamo Mphela took the stage right after with a building-shaking performance .
DBN Gogo was next with an Amapiano set, before the main act of the night, Nasty C took the stage. The Coolest Kid in Africa definitely delivered, ending with his hit song Particular. To close off the night, Juls took to the decks for an Afrobeats set that left everyone wanting more.
“This is the first of many initiatives to come. We would like to highlight even more African creators on an even bigger scale, to ensure that the whole world knows that Africa is not just a moment, it is here to stay.” – Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Managing Director, Spotify SSA
Photo Credit: Lesole Snap & Harmonix